S/C/61  
 
7 December  2020 
(20-8797) Page:  1/2 
Council for Trade in Services   
 
 
WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE  
REPORT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES  
TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL  
1.  The Council f or Trade in Services (CTS) agreed on 4 December  2020 that I should report to the 
General Council , on my own responsibility , regarding the work carried out under the Work 
Programme on Electronic Commerce since the last report presented in December  2019.1  
2.  The Council for Trade in Services discussed the Work Programme on Electronic Commerc e at its 
formal meeting s on 1 July, 2 October and 4 December 2020, in accordance with the December  2019 
General Council Decision2 to reinvigorate the work under the Work Programme, based on the existing 
mandate  as set out in document WT/L/274 . 
3.  In July, the Council addressed a communication by a group of Members proposing exploratory 
discussions on how to support digital capability of business and consumers.3 The document 
generated significant engagement, with around 40 delegations intervening. All Members w elcomed 
the communication as a useful contribution to the Work Programme, and numerous delegations said 
that it testified to the co -sponsors' commitment to the Work Programme and the value of continuing 
exploratory discussions that could support the work under the  Work Programme .   
4.  All Members underscored the crucial role that e-commerce plays in facilitating economic growth 
and development and noted that the COVID -19 pandemic had accentuated and accelerated this 
aspect. Many delegations shared their own ex periences and initiatives in support of digital 
capabilities, and several indicated that they would be contributing further at future meetings.   
5.  Numerous delegations valued the communication's focus on the need to bridge the digital divide, 
although some argued that the development angle of the paper could have been broader. Several 
Members called for the CTS discussions to focus more on the numerous infrastructural constraints 
faced by developing countries and LDCs. One Member expressed its concerns with the parallel Joint 
Statement Initiative (JSI) on e -commerce and its rule -making objective. Another Member 
underscored the importance of keeping WTO discussions trade -focused and urged Members not to 
take measures that undermined their goal of participating  effectively in digital markets.   
6.  The joint communication4 continued to generate substantive engagement at the October meeting 
of the CTS, with several delegations presenting detailed information and follow -up accounts of the 
initiatives they had underta ken to support digital capability of business and consumers. One Member 
also shared extensive information on its efforts to promote the development of the e -payment 
sector.  
7.  Members emphasised again that e -commerce was vital to fostering economic growth an d 
development and stressed that the COVID -19 pandemic has highlighted this aspect. While 
acknowledging the benefits of e -commerce, a few Members affirmed that the Work Programme 
discussions had not sufficiently focused on the significant challenges it pose d. These Members argued 
that extending the e -commerce Moratorium would be harmful to developing countries and reiterated 
their concerns with the parallel JSI process and its rule -making intent.  
 
1 Document S/C/5 8. 
2 Document WT/L/1079.  
3 JOB/SERV/296/Rev.2, co -sponsored by Australia; Brazil; Canada; Colombia; Hong Kong, China; 
Japan; Mexico; New Zealand; Nigeria; Norway; Singapore and the United Kingdom.  
4 The communication was revised on 29  September, in JOB/SERV/29 6/Rev.3, to add Ukraine as a 
co-sponsor.  S/C/61  
 
- 2 - 
 
  8.  Deliberations  at the December meeting of the Council  continue d to be invigorated by the joint 
communication  proposing exploratory discussions on supporting digital capabilities of business and 
consumers .5 Several delegations presented in-depth  information about  their programmes and 
initiatives in this area.  
9.  In the course of this year, Members, including various delegations that are not co -sponsors of 
the joint communication, have contributed meaningful and extensive information about their e-
commerce -related activities and projects. T he material s that have been  shared by Members provide, 
in my view, useful input s to facilitate Members' reflections on e -commerce, in terms of both the 
opportunities and the challenges that it presents. As a way  to facilitate access to this material, and 
to enhance transparency on the various initiatives taken in the e -commerce sphere, I suggested 
that the information that are currently scattered in the records of meetings could be compiled into 
a structured stan d-alone, living document. Many delegations welcomed and supported the proposal. 
A few sought clarifications, including about how the information would be compiled and presented, 
and one expressed reservations. To try and address the issues raised by delega tions, I will be 
producing a concept note, to provide further detail about my proposal.  
10.  Various delegations called for the Work Programme to engage in focused and comprehensive 
discussions  on the  relationship between e -commerce and development. They highli ghted the  
challenges faced by developing countries, particularly  with regard to  the digital divide , in terms of 
infrastructure, skills and technologies,  and the data divide, especially relating to the capacity to 
store, process  and leverage the commercial value of  data. These delegations said that the gains 
from e -commerce were not automatic  and required strategic intervention at all levels.  
11.  Two delegations reiterated their concern with the JSI process and its  premature rule-making 
objective , and said that the extension of the Moratorium would be harmful to developing countries.  
A number of Members disagreed with these assertions  and noted that the JSI is inclusive, transparent 
and open to participation by all Members, and that new rules on e-commerce  were long overdue, 
and added that evidence pointed to the Moratorium having had far -reaching benefits for businesses 
and consumers.  
12.  A representative of UNCTAD briefed the Council about its recent work in electronic commerce, 
including studies on the impact of COVID -19 on e -commerce.  
__________  
 
5 The communication was revised on 1 December , in JOB/SERV/296/Rev. 4, to add the Republic of Korea  
as a co -sponsor.